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I have a clear enclosure with a mix of different isopods, and I've noticed some of the armadillidium, especially nasatum, seem to occasionally get their front half stuck in shed and die. I've tried reducing humidity, and upping it. I'm currently watching one, through foggy plastic, that appears to be stuck. I've also tried increasing calcium with egg shells (although I believe I overdid it at one point and had a few die off so I haven't added any for few months now). I make sure to have protein sources available constantly through fish/dog/cat food (that's removed if it begins to mold) plus nutritional yeast (mostly for the springtails but the isopods enjoy running off with the flakes) Maybe the more aggressive species are keeping the rolys from the dampest areas? But I don't really see them picking on each other across species.. Suggestions???

This photo thread won't be nearly as prolific as the one by the same name on the mantidforum since roaches are about 75% of what I keep at the moment, but nonetheless, it should be a fun, little place. Let's begin with my most miniscule and possibly most otherworldly beetle species, your favorite pest, Mezium affine. Mezium affine Adults

Greetings. I’ve recently come across the Isopod community and I’ve been enthralled. After some research, I decided to breed the Species Porcellio Scaber. However, after some research I concluded that in Australia, where I live, there are no colour morphs available other than the standard wild type. It is my personal goal to produce a stable colour morph for the Australian Isopod community. I would very much appreciate it if you could critique my methods and such for this breeding program, so I can improve it. Methods: Enclosures Two populations were purchased from separate breeders, with 50 individuals in both populations. Each population is kept within separate containers, the first population hereby referred to as line “A” is kept within a thermostat-controlled Terrarium that also houses two Giant burrowing cockroaches, the second population referred to as Line "B" is kept within a more basic enclosure. The terrarium is kept at a stable 22.5 *C (72.5*F) temperature, although occasionally the temperature rises to as high as 26*C (78.8*F) at times. Humidity ranges between 63% R.F to 80% R.F. The enclosure is misted 3 times a week. The substrate is a mixture of cocofibre and sand. The Isopods are provided with a variety of hardwood leaves, including Oak, eucalyptus, and American Sweetgum. Supplementary food is provided once a week in either the form of carrot, potatoe, or a specialised Isopod food purchased from Minibeasts.com. In addition, pulpy wood has been provided as well as a calcium supplement (cuttlebone). The second enclosure is a basic 10L (2.64 Gallon) tub. It is a relatively opaque blue container, to minimise light in the enclosure. This enclosure is not heated, however since the room is heated the temperature is a relatively stable 23*C (73*F) during the day, although it occasionally drops down to a minimum of 21*C (69.8*F) at night and to a max of 26*C (78.8*F) during hot days. The humidity is uniformly above 90% R.F. It is misted once a week due to the lower rate of ventilation and evaporation. The substrate within is purely coconut fibre. A mix of the same hardwood leaves as in the terrarium are provided, in addition to a range of decomposing rainforest leaves sold as millipede food. Supplementary food and cuttlebone is the same. Populations: The two populations are sourced from entirely separate gene pools that are geographically isolated. The first population (Line A) is sourced from a population that has been kept in captivity for multiple generations and is generally consistent, although two albino individuals have been isolated from this line. The second population (line has been kept in captivity for far less time and has been sourced from wild caught individuals only a couple of generations ago. The two populations originated from locations 2,900KM separated. This population shows a great variation in phenotypes. Breeding objective: My objective is to isolate any distinct variety of colour morph. What is the best method to go about this? Thus far, I’ve been waiting for a second generation of isopods to be produced in each of the enclosures. Could the albino line be isolated from line A? Questions I’ve also seen quite a few Orange coloured variations in the American Porcellio Scaber populations, is it a common morph that is produced? In addition, do you think that if I made a third, intermediate, population that the mixing of the genetically isolated populations would produce a number of new variations? Lastly, are there any improvements on my setup that could be made? Kind Regards.

I don't tend to post much on forums due to anxiety, but I had to introduce myself at the very least. c: So here is my little story. While I'm not new to researching invertebrates, I am relatively new to actively keeping them and started late last year with my small group of Byrsotria rothi from Roach Crossing. Little loves of my life, my beautiful dig sons, they've been with me through a really terrible patch in my life and I'm glad we're still trucking together. Strange how I always saw myself starting out with a reptile first, or maybe some really handsome pet roach like a hisser or Therea, but instead these little chubby diggers stole my heart and kept it. I remember how anxious I was, practically in tears when there was a mistake with shipping and my five little babies were sent directly to my (all women's) college instead of being held at the post office. I remember going down to student services and having to explain what was going on, and how nonchalantly they brushed it aside and just gave me the package early, no issues at all. (Mind you, later on the housing director HIMSELF even found out about them, and his first comment was "Oh, I just thought that was a box of dirt!" and his only complaint was they were in a plastic tub and not a glass tank!) I nervously took my little box upstairs to my dorm, left alone since my roommate moved out in the winter, giving me the opportunity to get inverts of my own. Seeing them for the first time, I admit my hands were shaky and it was a bit of an adventure as I gently talked to them and made their little modified 15 qt suitable for them, feeling more than a little nervous now that they were actually in front of me. In the end though, everyone ended up in their new home just fine and went about their little roach business. It was a little embarrassing how I still wasn't quite ready to even touch them on my own but...as time went on I quickly warmed up to my gentle, strong sons. I managed to let them crawl over my hands and I loved watching them "bulldoze" their substrate, like the strong lads they are. And the first time I managed to pick one up properly was just indescribable. Pardon my terrible voice in this video (and the fact that its on tumblr...), I was trying to be quiet for the roach and was still a little nervous and the phone recording didn't help: https://moore-bugaboos.tumblr.com/post/156690933025/a-cute-beeb-doots-about-then-tries-to-hide-ive I am much more comfortable with my roaches now, even though they have scared the shit out of me before if they get startled and bolt under the leaf litter fast enough, but I can't imagine life without them. It's much easier to be around them and to pick them up, and they've grown so much from the little round babies I started with. Their tiny, gentle tickles and digs have become Strong Grasps and Tough Tickles and their digging like the burrows of Champions. I love my strong, burrowing sons so much, I really do. I'll attach some pictures of them as well, but keep in mind most besides the picture of the shiny new adult are outdated. Their enclosure has changed, and is generally a lot messier since they're bigger now and I added a ton more leaf litter. I noticed they REALLY like the size of live oak leaf litter and became much more active when i added a nice, deep layer of it for them. Well worth the mess, if it means they're more confident and active in moving around their enclosure. I also recently within the past few months finally got into isopod keeping! I got my first isopods from Alan at Captive Isopoda and I can't recommend him enough. I ordered 20+ mixed Porcellio scaber "lottery ticket". Best decision I ever made, and I seriously encourage picking these up. They are essentially "extras" from a variety of P. scaber crosses, and while they look like normals, oranges, dalmations, or calicos depending on what you choose, they also have a grab bag of different recessives, so their offspring can be really surprising. I thought this was an awesome idea, and I couldn't be happier. Alan himself was also awesome to work with, and when I told him I was new to the hobby but obsessed with isos and super excited about breeding them, he even surprised me with a "free gift" of a starter culture of 12+ P. pruinosis "orange"! Since getting my isopods, they've absolutely flourished and I'm happy to say they're reproducing so well and now a lot of their babies have grown large enough to identify their morphs. My p. scaber culture is currently a beautiful mix of normals, oranges, one calico, a few orange dalmations, a few normal dalmations, one very distinct brown dalmation [to which Alan explained brown and even purple dalmations are occasionally found in cultures, yes], and in their offspring i have 2-3 of what I am almost certain are orange pieds! While I haven't gotten a picture yet, I've seen them on multiple occasions and recognize them instantly. They were not there from the beginning, and are very pretty with an orange background and a small number of growing white patches. It'll be a lot of fun to see what else they produce as time goes on. And well, I think I've rambled enough. This should be a good enough intro. The only other things I can say are I've besides invertebrates of varying kinds (focus on isopods, roaches and tarantulas), I've also researched reptiles, amphibians, and domestic birds (chickens and pigeons) extensively and I'm incredibly passionate about animal welfare and enrichment, no matter the creature or its purpose. Even roaches deserve proper care and respect, you know? Even feeders. Yes, they will be fed off, but at least their life goes to sustain another, and they deserve a level of respect for their purpose and a healthy, comfortable life as well. Maybe not a plush pillow and food on a silver platter, but a certain level of quality of living is important for everything. But heck, maybe that's just me, heh heh. Only other thing I can think of saying is I probably won't post too much, but feel free to talk to me, just be warned, I can be a chatterbox. I shouldn't EVER talk as much as I did in this post, and I do try very hard to be concise, so don't let that scare anyone off too bad, please. c: [Also I did try uploading pictures, but I guess my phone made them all too high of a resolution. I'll need to adjust those so I can actually post them, if anyone wants to see the dig sons or their enclosure, which I am rather fond of for my first try. Or my isopods, I do have a couple neat pictures of them, and they are rather handsome when all the different colors interact and skitter around together.]

Hey Guys! Here's the second post in my four-post photo series, this one is on my isopods, and although it's not nearly as long as my roach post, it still has a ton of great pics! Here it is: https://allaboutarthropods.blogspot.com/2016/11/photos-my-isopods.html Enjoy!

My experiences with a variety of species: http://bit.ly/1bG92u0